Frog-operating mechanism.



Patentd June 24. I902. F C. ANDERSON. FROG OPERATING MECHANISM.

(Application filed Aug. 12, 1901.)

' (No Model.)

MI I- 40itneases.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK C. ANDERSON, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO AARON E.LLOYD AND GOODLOW P. GILTZ, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO.

FROG-OPERATING MECHANISM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 703,035, dated June 24,1902.

Application filed August 12, 1901. Serial No. 71,757. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK. C. ANDERSON, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cincinnati, in the county of Hamilton and State 5 of Ohio,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Frog-OperatingMechanism, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, formingpart of this specification.

My invention relates to frog-operating mechanism in switch constructionswhereby I am enabled to dispense with both rigid and spring frogs and amenabled in a very simple manner to provide an operating, mechanism forthe frog in connection with the switch mechanism by which bothsimplicity and oheapness of construction are obtained and whereby thesafety of travel is very largely enhanced; and it consists, essentially,in the provision of hinged wings for the frog which are connected withand operated simultaneously by the switch-throwing mechanism, all aswill be hereinafter more fully set forth, and specifically pointed outin the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a broken plan view of a partof the main track and a siding at the switch and frog connecting the twotracks. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the frog-point and connected parts.Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional end elevation on the dotted line w ofFig. 1. Fig. 4: is a broken sectional plan view showing the hinge-jointand its connection. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of Fig. 4, but containingthe ball or tread of the rail which is removed from Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is adetail end elevation, enlarged, of the adjusting mechanism on theswitch-throwin g and frog-wing-throwing bars.

The same letters of reference are used to indicate identical parts inall the figures.

In Fig. 1, A represents the rails of the main track, and B the rails ofthe siding, both secured in the usual or any suitable manner upon thecross-ties C. F represents the usual or any suitable switch-points,connected to a subjacent bar G, operated by a switch-stand H, of theusual or any suitable construction, and I is the usual or any suitablebrace-bar 50 between the switch-points.

The frog (shown in plan in Fig. 2) may be of the usual or any suitableconstruction, though it is somewhat shorter than the ordinary frog, andits point Eis the termination of both the main-track rail A andside-track rail B, as illustrated. It is supported upon a base-plate J,secured to two adjacent crossties C and which forms a sliding bearingfor the two wings K L of the frog, which wings are secured by hingedjoints to the rails A B in a manner to be now described, reference beinghad more particularly to Figs. land 5. Upon the outer side of the web ofthe rail 13 is bolted, after the manner of a fish-plate, a plate M,having perforated lugs a, between which is pivoted, by means of a pin 6,an ear 0 on a plate N, bolted to the adjacent end of the web of the wingL. The plate N is bolted to a plate 0 upon the inner side of the web ofthe wing L, which plate has an extension d lapping over the adjacent endof the web of the rail B, as seen in Fig. 4:, and one or more bolts e,through the web of the wing and the plate 0 adjacent to the hinge-joint,serve to form a rigid connection to take strain oftofthe pivot b of thehinge-joint when the wheels pass over the same. The plate N likewise hasa projection f confined in a guide-staple'g, bolted to a bed-plate P,extending entirely under both of the wings K L and secured to thecross-ties C beneath it. This bed-plate not only extends under the wingsof the frog at the hinge-joint, but also under the adjacent ends of therails A B, as shown in Figs. 1 and 5, and the plates M are bolted tosaid plate P, as shown. Between the adjacent ends of the rails A B atthe hinge-joint is also secured a spacing block or plate Q,with upturnedflanges, by which it is bolted through the webs of said rails to the 0plates M, as seen in Figs. 1 and 4. A very rigid construction I is thuseifected at the hinge-joints, which is at the same time simple and cheapin construction.

The end of the bar G on the side of the 5 track opposite theswitch-stand is pivoted to a bell-crank lever B, pivoted to one of thecross-ties, as at i, and has its opposite end connected by a rodj,preferably with an adjusting-turnbuckle k to the corresponding end 103of a bell-crank lever Z, pivoted, as at m, to a cross-tie and having itsopposite end pivoted by a connecting-link u to a subjacent bar S,uniting the ends of the frog-wings K L in such manner that when theswitch is thrown to make the main track continuous the frogwing K isbrought into close contact with the frog-point E, as seen in Fig. 1, andthe wing L is thrown away from said point, and when the switch is thrownin the opposite direction, to make the side track continuous with themain track, the frog-wing Lis brought in contact with the point E andthe wing K is thrown away from said point, as will be readilyunderstood.

T is the usual guard-rail for thezfrog-point, and to give adjustment tothe parts I prefer to unite the switch-points and the frog-wings totheir subjacent operating-bars by adj usting-screws U, Fig. 6, which areconfined in perforated lugs 0, secured upon the operating-bars S Gr andhave their ends secured by short plates 19 on each side of the web ofthe rail and with looking and adjusting nuts 1' on each side of the lugso.

By the foregoing construction I provide a simple and efficient wingmechanism for the frog-point, the wings of which are hinged to the railsand by which a secure union is effected between the wing ends and thefrogpoint to insure safety in the passage of the wheels and to secure apositive movementin the operation of said wings which could not besecured in the case of a spring-frog or a rigid frog, as will be readilyunderstood.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim- In frog-operatingmechanism, the combination of the frog-wing and its adjacent rail, of ahinged joint composed of the plates M N pivoted together, as at b, andbolted to the webs of the respective rail-sections, the plate 0 boltedto the web of the frog-wing and overlapping the joint, and a guide-lug ffor the frog-wing guided in a housing 9 secured to the plate P,substantially as described.

FRANK C. ANDERSON.

\Vitnesses:

EDWARD PEoK, CHAS. M. PECK.

